


Let's Keep This Between Us

by steak_sandwich



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types, Pocket Monsters: Sword & Shield | Pokemon Sword & Shield Versions
Genre: F/F, Fluff, M/M, Mutual Pining, Secret Relationship, because I'm weak for these two getting tf married, eventually proposal too
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-19
Updated: 2020-02-03
Packaged: 2021-02-27 09:20:21
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 15,357
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22324696
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/steak_sandwich/pseuds/steak_sandwich
Summary: Leon has just lost the title and he isn't sure what to do with himself anymore, but once feelings start to develop for Raihan, or rather, once he realises they're there, he finds he can't stop thinking about a future with him now that he has more freedom.Once they finally get past the mutual pining, they decide it's best to keep their relationship between themselves because the last thing they want is the media to be at their heels constantly.Unfortunately it's the hardest thing to do when all you want to do is kiss your boyfriend in public.
Relationships: Dande | Leon/Kibana | Raihan, Rurina | Nessa/Sonia
Comments: 24
Kudos: 143





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Heyyyy it's me yet again. This time with a pretty basic fic but I wanted to explore fluff and pining some more :')
> 
> Also the idea of these two trying to keep their relationship a secret with the media/paps on their heels.

As much as he tried to hold on to the title, Leon knew there was no hope in putting a stop to the kid taking it from him anymore, and even though he was entirely prepared in admitting defeat, the first loss he had ever experienced since first coming here at the age of 10 still stung.  
And although he tried to hide it, he knew that there were cameras all around filming his momentary vulnerability before throwing his hat to the air as a distraction.

Everything thereafter felt like a complete blur, he remembered congratulating the newly crowned champion and pushing through the endless stream of vulture-like press, not entirely in the mood to answer them, but nothing else.  
He was certain he spent a lot of time just sitting in the changing rooms, reflecting on what exactly he could do now, but even that felt like a blur.

He had no idea how he managed to retreat back to his Wyndon home unscathed, but here he was, lying on his bed, moping, while trawling through social media on his Rotom.  
It probably wasn't the best course of action, but it still served as a distraction until it became too much to bear in the end.  
"Rotom, go charge up." He ordered listlessly, letting the creature float from his fingers as he busied himself with doing nothing more than stare at the ceiling.  
What was he going to do now?  
He guessed he could take on the role of Chairman after Rose was forced to resign, but he didn't even know how to go about that.

He snapped out of his thoughts when he heard impatient rapping at his door, only to freeze as he heard the door turn and open.  
 _He was sure he locked it._  
He reached for whatever blunt object he could find while he waited for the perpetrator to make their move, taking a sharp intake of breath and steeling himself as they finally turned into his room.

He raised the plant pot high and just about stopped himself just in the nick of time, he could recognise that slouchy stature and blue eyes anywhere.  
"Arceus, Raihan, ever heard of patience?" He groaned, putting the vase aside and rising to his feet to hug him, or rather, faceplant his chest.  
" _I was knocking for like five minutes, dumbass._ " He complained, stiffening against Leon's touch at first before relaxing into it and reluctantly petting his hair.

"'s not so bad losing, y'know." He encouraged helplessly, letting his hand hover above his head a little before Leon nudged him for more pets.  
"Come on... This isn't like you." He said, breaking the awkward silence that filled the air as he continued to run his fingers through his hair.  
"Dunno what to do now.." He murmured, muffled, finally moving his face from Raihan's chest in favour of staring up at him.  
 _They looked so lifeless._  
"Damn this is really hitting you hard, huh? Why don't I get some drinks in? Order some pizza." He suggested, earning a shake of the head from his friend.  
"Well I'm gonna do it anyway, you... wetwipe."   
He was relieved that the insult earned him a little smile at least.  
"Why don't you take a shower while I head out? I won't be long."  
He hummed in thought, only to be cut off by Raihan again.  
"That's not a suggestion, if you still stink when I get back I swear to Arceus..."  
"Fine, fine, just go!" He whined, practically shoving the lanky being back out the door, half tempted to lock it for certain this time.  
He just sighed and did as he was asked.

-

By the time he was out of the shower Raihan had still made no return, and although he was getting tired of wallowing, fast, he couldn't help but continue to do so.  
Even though he knew it was a stupid idea, he headed to the tv and threw it on, ignoring the headline after headline announcing his fall from the championship until he finally found something different.  
He wasn't one for domestic cooking shows, but it served him well as he at least learned something new, and maybe if he could commit it to memory he could cook for Raihan sometime.

As if summoned, Raihan had finally made his return, practically kicking down the door with his long limbs and barging in with two bags full of booze.  
He squinted over the sofa at him as he lumbered through the door into the living room, dropping to his side onto the sofa and placing the bags on the floor beside them.  
"They're not chilled but they'll do, right? Also I ordered the pizza on the way back so it shouldn't be too long."  
He rifled through the carrier bag and procured a large bottle to hand straight to Leon, only to earn daggers in his direction.  
"What? It's only low percentage, we're not gonna get shitfaced even if you _are_ a lightweight."  
"Oh but you know I will..." He mumbled, shrugging before opening the bottle and taking a swig.  
"Hm." Came his reply, leaning back comfortably as he took a bottle for himself and sipped it more cautiously.  
"What are you watching?"  
Leon shrugged. "Just a cooking show. It's all I could find-"  
"That doesn't talk about the Championship?" Raihan finished.  
"Listen, I know it's a sore point but it'll get better yeah?"  
"If you say so..." Leon sighed, taking another sip of his drink.  
"Why don't you take on the Chairman job now it's free?" He suggested after pause, unable to take his eyes from off Leon, he hated seeing him so down-spirited.  
"Also, don't you have more freedom now that you're no longer under his thumb? You can follow your dream, right? Or did you forget about that?"  
Leon's eyes widened in realisation, he _had_ forgotten about it, if he was honest, and he had no idea how Raihan managed to remember it on his behalf but he was grateful for it... Grateful for him.

Whether it was the drink, he had no idea, but as soon as he lifted his head, ignoring the swimming dizziness that had taken hold of him, he couldn't help but _stare_ at Raihan, how did he not take note of how attractive he had been before?  
He licked his lips and considered his words before he said something stupid, thankful he bit back what he really wanted to say.  
"Thank you.. You're right." He replied finally, turning his attention away and drinking some more before a knock came at the door, leaving him to sigh in relief as Raihan announced he'd fetch it.

He brought a hand to his brow to wipe away the beads of sweat that had formed there, swallowing nervously as Raihan sat beside him once more.  
"I don't feel well, maybe you should go-"  
Raihan laughed in response.  
"Drink get to you already? Have some pizza, soak it up." He countered, taking a slice from the box and practically shoving it in his face.  
"Ugh..." He groaned in protest but took it from him anyway, nibbling on it even if he had no appetite.

Raihan seemed to be completely entranced by the cooking show, and he was grateful for it because it gave him an opportunity to throw away the pizza without being seen.  
"I'm gonna go to bed.." He announced, putting the bottle aside and rising to his feet with a brief wobble, holding his arms outstretched in an attempt to keep his balance before toppling into Raihan.

"Shit, sorry."  
He closed his eyes tight in embarassment and felt his face get hotter all of a sudden, his heart began to race at what felt like a hundred miles per hour, and while he tried to scramble to get up he felt something stopping him from doing so.  
Confused, he opened his eyes to realise that Raihan had his hands in a hold to stop him from getting up again.  
"Raihan..?" He quizzed.  
"I'll... Carry you." He answered simply, easily scooping up the smaller man into his arms and rising to his feet to do as he had offered.

It only took a number of long strides to get to Leon's room and he placed him in his bed gently, taking great care not to harm him in any way.  
The moment he had hit the bed he felt the drowsiness begin to take over, whether it was what he had had of the drink, or maybe the stress of the day, but he was _exhausted_ and let his eyes close on him as he drifted into a sleep.

"...Good night." Raihan whispered, leaning forward to press a kiss to his friend's forehead, only to pull back quickly as he realised what he had done.  
He was just grateful that he was fast asleep at least, but it didn't stop him from retreating the room quickly and taking up his place on the sofa once more to finish off the pizza.  
The alcohol could wait for another time, though.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The pacing for this went differently as I wrote it than I expected it to while I mulled over what happens in my head, so I hope you still enjoy it ~
> 
> Basically this is turning out a little more slowburn than I expected it to be.

Raihan wasn't entirely sure whether he was outstaying his welcome by practically inviting himself to stay overnight, but what he was sure of was that Leon wouldn't have minded seeing him sprawled out on his sofa come morning.  
He didn't even recall making any effort to sleep, especially as the sofa did little to offer him any comfort in doing so, however suddenly he was being shaken awake by his friend.

"Wuh? Is it morning already?" He asked, stretching his arms and his legs over the arms of the sofa.  
He hadn't expected it, but he was glad to see Leon smiling down at him after the pain of the defeat the day previous, only he hoped it was a genuine smile.  
He couldn't help but smile back, holding back the laughter that threatened to spill once he clocked his hair, which could easily be described as a bird's nest.  
"Yeah.." Leon confirmed, nodding; "Do you want some breakfast?"

He mulled over the idea momentarily before moving himself off of the sofa, almost tripping over himself, he'd forgotten how low laying his sofa really was.  
He recovered before Leon could see though.  
"You're a culinary disaster Lee, let me do it." He implored, making his way to the kitchen before he had a chance to argue his case.  
He still followed him there, though.  
" _Culinary disaster?_ You _liked_ my Oran Omelette..."  
"I was being nice." He replied simply, rooting through the cupboards for the crockery he needed.  
"Besides, I think you could do with a nice meal." He added.  
Leon glared at him wordlessly but eventually relented.  
"Fine, but don't burn my kitchen down." He grumbled.  
"As if I would, love." Raihan responded, kicking himself for the jokey addition to his sentence, because what if Leon took it seriously?  
One glance in his direction wasn't enough to determine whether he'd heard him or not, he was straight faced.  
He'd just feign ignorance if he brought it up, he decided, and carried on preparing whatever foods he could get his hands on.

He could feel Leon's eyes on him from the living room and chose to ignore it for as long as he could until he called from over there.  
"Are you sure this isn't going to turn into a culinary disaster? It looks like you're throwing everything into the pan..."   
"Hey. It'll be a taste sensation, mark my words, Lee."  
He couldn't visibly see the smile, but he could tell it was there all the same, and it hit him like a wave just how much he loved Leon once again, but he cast it aside as he always had in the past and let the denial take over.  
There was no way he could fall for a man, and there was no way the people around him would accept it either, much less Leon-  
"Are you ok? You look feverish-"   
He hadn't even noticed he'd moved to his side, hadn't even noticed he'd taken the pan out of his hands, much too wrapped up in his thoughts.  
"Uh... I just zoned out, y'know, autopilot." He explained, stumbling over his words in the process.  
He could tell Leon wasn't convinced.  
"Uh-huh.... So. Is this _taste sensation_ ready to come off the heat yet?"  
He took a momentary pause as he tried to piece his thoughts back together before coming back to reality finally, nodding quickly and moving to grab the handle.

Leon did the same.

He could feel his face turn an even more treacherous shade of pink the moment he felt his hand resting against Leon's, but he made no immediate move to correct the situation and the hesitance left them both irrevocably flustered until they both set the pan aside.  
"Heh.. Uh, teamwork makes the dream work..." Raihan muttered, trying to make the situation even less awkward but he was sure he made it even more so.  
"Listen.. I just remembered I have an exhibition match this morning-"  
"No-"  
"I hope you enjoy your food-"  
"Wait, Rai."  
That was enough to silence him, not to mention keep him there momentarily, but it felt like the silence went on for eons while he watched Leon deliberate over what he was going to say next.

"...Yes?" He pressed, whether helpfully or not, he didn't know, but it at least prompted Leon to speak his mind.  
"I... just want to talk to you... Do you.. Do you..."  
 _He braced himself_  
"-Think I'd be a good Chairman?"  
 _He sighed in relief_ , no longer did he want the ground to swallow him whole, even if this felt like some kind of deviation from whatever he had intended to say, he'd take it.  
" _Of course you would._ There's no question." He replied easily. "And you know I'd help you out right?"   
He smiled in response and nodded.  
"Thank you Rai."

As if that was all he wanted from him, he resumed with serving up the breakfast onto two large Wailord themed plates.  
"Wow... I can't believe you still have these." Raihan remarked, taking a portion for himself before sitting in the living room again.  
"Hm?" Leon quizzed, a confused look on his face.  
"I got them for your 18th birthday, you don't remember?"  
"No..." He admitted, taking up the spare seat next to Raihan on the sofa before switching on the TV.  
"Sorry." He added, flicking through the channels once again until he found one that didn't mention anything about his title loss.  
 _Why were they still talking about it?_

He looked over at Raihan, then down at his food, only just realising he didn't really have much of an appetite, but he would try and eat it nonetheless, especially since Raihan put effort into it.  
He glanced over at him again and almost rolled his eyes when he saw him taking photos of the food, and of course of himself from as many angles as he could before finally tucking in himself.

But he wouldn't have him any different.  
He just wished he could tell him how he felt without any potential consequences, and even if the signs were there that Raihan liked him back he still couldn't help but doubt it.  
 _If it happens it happens..._

He took a bite of the food and almost gagged.  
Raihan burst out laughing as soon as he saw him take a bite.  
" _Arceus, you actually ate it! You brave soul.." _  
Leon glared at him with all the ire he could muster when he realised that Raihan didn't actually start eating his own after all.  
"I hate you."  
That just made him laugh more.  
"Leeeee~ It was a joke. I couldn't eat all the pizza yesterday so I.. blended it. I'm surprised it didn't wake you. But I really did prepare you something good, it's on the side." He reassured, getting to his feet to gesture in the general direction of the dish.  
"Make sure you don't burn it this time." He teased.  
"I'll burn _you_ "   
"Damn... With that glare I really believe you could, anyway I should really get going."  
At the announcement Raihan could have sworn he saw _disappointment_ clouding Leon's eyes, but he was probably imagining it, he assumed.  
"Let me know how the Chairman application goes, I honestly think you'll easily get it. After that we can celebrate-"  
"Do you have to go now? You're not _that_ busy off season, right?" Leon cut in, and he couldn't help but let the sadness in his tone get to him, not to mention his usual bright golden eyes seemed dull in comparison, defeated.  
He felt that pang of love once more, and he hated how it made him feel.  
"No..." He replied with more malice than he had intended, before practically running out of the door.__

__-_ _

__Wyndon was as busy as it had ever been, and while he loved the attention from passersby, craved it even, it was precisely what he didn't want right now.  
He put on false smiles for as long as he could until he finally found a secluded area and released his Flygon, stroking him calmly and gently before climbing onto his back carefully._ _

__He sat there momentarily as he filtered through his thoughts, and as much as he wanted to keep batting it away and continue casting aside his love for Leon, he felt himself utterly consumed, almost drowning in it, and it was unbearable._ _

__He wanted advice on how to deal with it, and he was sure he knew someone who had to deal with the same._ _

__"Rotom, can you call Sonia or Nessa? Whoever's free."  
" _Calling Nessa!_ " it trilled.  
He waited with bated breath as he heard the Rotom's rings permeate throughout the alleyway, until she finally answered.  
"Hey Rai, everything good?"  
"..Yeah, listen, could I have a word? Are you free right now?"  
He chewed his lip as he waited for her deliberation.  
"Sure. You know where I am." She replied bluntly before cutting the call._ _

__He patted his cheeks to psych himself up.  
 _A trait he no doubt picked up from Leon._  
"Hypothetically speaking..." He murmured to himself, running through conversation possibilities in his head.  
"Let's go to Hulbury, Snaps."_ _


	3. Chapter 3

Admittedly Raihan was never dressed well for the occasion when he decided to take Snaps for a flight from one area of Galar to another, he was always too hurried in the decision to even let the thought cross his mind that he should be swathed in numerous layers of clothing before taking off.  
How he had never caught a cold for such recklessness was beyond him, too, but he knew that nothing would stop him from taking such drastic actions.  
Being in flight allowed him time to taste the fresh air, he loved the feeling of it flowing through his locs and he always used the time wisely to think while he had the opportunity of being left alone.

Unfortunately the flight to Hulbury was a short one, and as soon as he saw it come into view he pressed his fingers gently into Snaps' neck to signal that this was the destination he wanted to go to.  
Often his Flygon would be stubborn and completely disobey, and he knew it depended on their mood, the weather, and whether they were reluctant or not to be flying at length.  
This time they relented almost immediately, dipping at a steady pace to allow for a smooth landing near the lighthouse.  
"Good boy." He crooned, scritching the inside of their neck before dismounting and rooting through his pocket for a stray treat to give them.  
All he had was a smooshed Pecha berry, but it seemed to do the trick just fine.

He rubbed off the residue that had seeped onto his Rotom as he fished that out of his pocket too, apologising profusely for being so careless.  
"Hey Rotom, can you call Nessa please."  
_"Calling Nessa!"_ It responded before he'd even finished his request, unable to help himself from smiling at its supposed eagerness.

"Hey Rai, Nessa is in the middle of a shoot at the moment so she asked me to answer on her behalf."  
It took him a second to register who's voice it was on the other side, and he paused momentarily as he thought about it.  
Whether she'd noticed his brief interlude, she didn't hint at it at least.  
He nodded in acknowledgement, almost forgetting they weren't PokeTiming each other.  
"Hey 'Nia, that's fine, I'm early anyway so I can wait around, do you know how long she'll be?"  
He heard shuffling against the phone as she covered the receiver.  
"It's running over so she said she'd meet you at the Lighthouse in half an hour."  
He glanced up at the protruding building he was stood right next to at that moment.  
_It really is an eyesore.._  
"Got it, thanks 'Nia."  
He knew she hated him calling her that, and the groan of disgust on the other end of the phone just amused him no end until she wordlessly hung up on him.  
"Cheers Rotom, you can go back on rest mode if you'd like." He offered, opening his fingers carefully to let the creature float out of its own will.  
_"Battery is at 79% I will last for approximately 242 minutes unused. So I will remain here."_  
"Fair." He hummed. "Guess I want to take some pics anyway."

He did have some time to kill after all, and even though he still didn't exactly know how to phrase what kind of advice he wanted to ask for from Nessa, he decided to waste it doing menial tasks instead.  
Even though Hulbury was one of the smaller towns of the Galar region, he still got accosted by the odd fan while he was in the middle of taking selfies or taking photos of the coast.  
He was particularly happy with a photo he managed to snap of a Pelipper and Corvisquire fighting over food scraps they'd discovered on the street, promptly posting it to his PokeGram with the caption: Who will win?

He glanced at the battery life in the corner of his Rotom and decided to put it away once more, settling for waiting the rest of the time for Nessa at the Lighthouse.  
He didn't have time to browse the market, and he was sure that he saw the townspeople begin to take down the stalls for the day anyway as he passed on the way back to the Lighthouse.

He leaned against the cool stone, again staring out to sea, almost entranced by the sight and the sound of the waves when he was snapped out of it by the sounds of footsteps approaching, he glanced up to see Nessa approaching and smiled, only to hold it forcibly when he saw Sonia following after her.  
He adored them both, of course, but he wanted to talk to Nessa and Nessa alone right now.  
Maybe she'd be leaving soon anyway, at least he'd hoped, because the last thing he wanted was any of this making its way back to Leon, at least not yet anyway.  
"Hey!" He greeted, trying his best to sound as enthused as possible, but neither of them looked too convinced about it.

"Are you ok?" They asked in unison, stopping themselves and glancing at eachother amusedly before turning back to him, eagerly waiting an answer.  
"Yeah I'm fine I just... Didn't expect to see you here Sonia, honestly, I thought you'd have gone home."  
"Rude." She huffed, although she seemed to be feigning offence before punching Raihan weakly in the arm.  
"Whatever you want to say you can say to both of us." She added, folding her arms almost petulantly.  
He worried his lip nervously between his teeth, careful not to catch it on his canine.  
"Fine but.... Can we at least go to the restaurant or something? Who knows who's watching us out here."  
"Sure." Nessa complied. "I can get us a private booth."

-

He stared at the menu for a little longer than necessary, because he knew precisely what he wanted to order, and it was the same thing he always ordered, anything that isn't _fish._ He sighed and put the menu aside, looking up at the pair with a little twang of jealousy in his gut as they cooed at eachother like lovesick puppies.  
Nessa reeled off their orders to the waiter as he came by and turned her attention to Raihan immediately.  
"So what's eating you? You look like you've been chewing on combees... Or something." She shook her head, realising her metaphor didn't really work.  
He drummed his fingers on the table and licked his lips as he prepared to say what he was going to say, but then he realised that he was coming up empty when he realised that he had no idea what he _wanted_ to say.  
He inhaled sharply and finally began.  
"Hypothetically..." He murmured, averting his gaze as soon as Nessa furrowed her brows in confusion.  
"Hypothetically?" She echoed, encouraging him to press on.  
"Well... How do you do it?" He asked, waving a hand to gesture at the two generally.  
"How do you... cope? When you're in the public eye all the time and... I don't know, people... Don't people look at you differently for not fitting with the norm?"  
He tried to be as vague as possible, but he knew from the way their eyes seemed to stare into his soul that they knew _exactly_ what he meant.

Nessa threaded her fingers together slowly and rested her chin on her hands in thought, choosing her words carefully.  
"Do you care more about how others perceive you, or do you care more about your own happiness? I think, 'Hypothetically', one should always choose the path of happiness. I don't care what others think about us, but at the same time nothing has really changed.  
Ever since we announced we were an item, we actually got more support than ever from the people around us."

She eyed him curiously as he remained silent, lost in his own consideration and thought for so long, the food had arrived before he managed to utter another word.  
She _was_ right.  
"I... Would still like to keep it to ourselves, should anything come of it. Just in case." He murmured, mostly to himself as the pair were once again too wrapped up in eachother.  
He smiled and shook his head, twirling the pasta absentmindedly as he stared at the wall beyond them.  
" _Arceus_ , I feel like a third wheel here."

-

Raihan had gotten the advice he wanted from his friends, and he was glad for it, but he hadn't expected to be held back to gossip and with the pair into the early hours of the morning.  
He was certain that loosening up like that did him the world of good, though, and that disgust he held with himself as a whole seemed to completely dissipate with every bit of reassurance and encouragement they had given him.  
Hearing "It's ok to be gay" repeated to him drunkenly surprisingly did wonders for him, and he couldn't help but laugh at the pair as they struggled to hold their drinks.  
He had learned more than he'd ever known about the two, and there was no doubt in his mind he was going to keep their secrets to himself.  
He just hoped that they would do the same and not broadcast it to the world that he had in fact, been crushing on Leon for as long as he could remember, but was so stuck in denial until they had eased his secret out of him.

He sighed as he watched the pair tangled up in eachother, the more he thought about it, the more worried he was about the situation.  
Leon wouldn't feel the same, he just wouldn't.  
"Rotom.." He whispered, loud enough for his device to hear but not enough to stir the girls.  
He took a hold of it as soon as it hovered within grasp and started to search for Leon's name under his contacts.

The device suddenly felt hot under his fingers as he stared at the name on the screen, maybe he had more confidence with the alcohol in his system, but there was still that dread holding him back from doing something stupid.  
He took a deep breath and typed out the message hastily, closing his eyes tightly as he pressed "send".  
"Message Sent!" Rotom chimed.  
"Message Read!" It added almost immediately.  
" _What-_ "  
_Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit. What had he done???_

He shut his eyes tight again the moment a message had come back through from Leon, _why was he even up so late?_

He swallowed nervously and decided to bite the bullet, if this was the end of their friendship over something so trivial then maybe it wasn't worth it in the end.  
He opened the message and glanced over it.  
He blinked and read it again.  
And again, and again.

**_Message from Leon, Received at 01.11: I love you too_**


	4. Chapter 4

He was staring, mouth agape as he read the message over and over again, even mumbling it out loud so it could reach his ears.  
There was no way this was real, either it was an elaborate joke, probably to get him back for the whole leftover pizza ordeal, or he was probably asleep and dreaming about it.  
He rubbed his eyes for good measure, and he even pinched himself, but still there those words were, illuminated by the light on the screen.

He hovered his thumb over the keyboard as he considered his next move, if Leon really typed that back so hastily, then maybe he meant nothing by it either.  
Not to mention he was probably half asleep too.

**_Do you mean that?_ **

That sounded too forced, he erased the message quickly and thought some more, and decided to finally start with an apology for practically running out on him earlier on.

**_i'm sorry for leaving so abruptly earlier. are u ok? its pretty late mate_**  
"Message Sent!"  
 _Shit, he forgot to put his Rotom on silent._  
He glanced over at the girls, still fast asleep on the bed, unmoving, and began to wonder just what would even stir them at this rate.

He stared at the message as it sent through, pulling the app aside as he waited for a response, there was no way he'd be able to sleep now after that revelation was revealed to him.  
He mulled over the idea of browsing PokeGram and eventually scrolled through it briefly, only tiring of seeing constant posts from Alolans and nobody else.

He glanced up at the time in the corner and decided to give Leon some more time to respond as he opened up a game instead, he had no idea what the point was in playing a game where you could catch Pokemon when you could easily do it in real life, but it killed the time and that was all he required of it at that point.

His phone buzzed in his hand as he finally got a response from Leon, and of course it was a long winded paragraph, no wonder it took so long for him to respond.

**_Message from Leon, Received at 01.32: Yeah I know it's late. I just couldn't sleep, and honestly... I just couldn't stop thinking about you, especially thinking I'd done something wrong to you.  
Not to mention I'm worried about whether I'll get the Chairman job, still, I did apply for it after and I'll hear back tomorrow- today whether I got it or not._ **

He skimmed through the message, feeling his face flush red as soon as he passed over the words claiming that he couldn't stop thinking about him.  
Perhaps he was unaware of the signals those words would have sent, but Raihan decided to deviate from bringing that up for now, he felt embarrassed and the exhaustion was beginning to take its toll on him.

**_Listen, if u don't get it I swear to Arceus I will fight someooone_ **

**_Message from Leon, Received at 01.37: There's no need for violence._ **

He really missed the joke huh? He guessed it would go over his pretty little airhead.

**_It was a joke. Anyway you'll definitely get it._**  
He glanced over the last message before sending it, choosing to add more on to the end after careful consideration.  
He wanted to completely ignore it but he knew it would end up eating away at him and stop him from getting any kind of sleep in the long run.

**_When you said you loved me... Can we talk about it properly tomorrow? After you get accepted for your new job of course ;) I'll treat you to dinner._ **

**_Message from Leon, Received at 01.41: Ye, I meant what I said th_ **

Raihan waited a while longer for an addition to his last message, but given that his quality of typing completely stagnated, he could tell that Leon must have been exhausted and had probably fallen asleep before the Rotom obliged in sending the unfinished message anyway.

**_Good Night Lee xx_ **

"Rotom, go on sleep mode for now please." He murmured, feeling the pull of sleep on his eyes himself as the issue somewhat resolved itself.

-

The sun streamed through Nessa's large windows in the morning, and Raihan had forgotten he'd been facing them as he lay on the makeshift bed on the floor, groaning before rolling to the other side again and trying to get more sleep.

" _Too early..."_ He muttered grumpily, pulling the small pillow over his head as he listened to the sizzling of bacon being fried in the kitchen nearby.  
He could feel his head throbbing and it was no doubt the beginnings of a hangover, even though he was sure he didn't drink that much.  
The night previous had been a complete blur though so maybe he was wrong.

He peered out from under the pillow as Sonia stepped into the room, looking cheerful as ever despite being even more shitfaced than he was the night before.  
"Why do you look so... Awake..." He grumbled, uncaring of the malice in his tone.  
"Maybe because I actually slept?" She countered knowingly.  
"I'll get you some paracetamol." She added, returning into the kitchen and rooting through the medicine cabinet.  
"Hey Ness where is the paracetamol?" He heard her ask.  
"Oh I think we're out..." She hummed in response.  
"It's fine.. I should probably be making tracks anyway. There'll be a lot of air traffic today no doubt." He murmured, reluctantly unrolling himself from the blanket he'd cocooned himself in while he slept.  
"Thank you both for your help, I'll shoot you a message when I arrive home."

Despite their sounds of protest he made his way out of the door and let Flygon out of his ball.  
"Hey Snaps, mind flying me home?" He cooed, scratching at the Pokemon's weak spots to ease him up a little.  
"I'll cook up your favourite snacks when we get home."  
The Flygon gave him a knowing look, as if he didn't completely trust that Raihan would keep to his word, because he'd heard that before.  
Eventually he relented and crouched a little so that Raihan could climb on, a feat that was never any trouble with those long limbs of his.

-

The flight home wasn't as long as he expected it to be, and whether that was down to him slipping in and out of consciousness now and then until Snaps headbutted him awake, he was unsure, but he was thankful for his tough love anyway.  
"I'll get on those snacks for you as soon as I've taken some paracetamol, I promise." He suggested, petting Flygon some more before withdrawing him into his ball and stepping foot inside his home.

Even though it had probably been no more than a week since he left his home for Wyndon, it felt like he was gone for _eons._  
He sighed blissfully, because there was nothing better than returning to your own home.  
He poured himself a glass of water and took the intended medicine to ease off the headache before collapsing onto his sofa and retrieving Rotom from his pocket.

"Hey Rotom." He greeted, checking through any messages of import he had missed since he'd last checked social media.  
A lot of notifications arrived still from the post he'd made about the Corvisquire and Pelipper, and from a brief scroll he decided that unsurprisingly Corvisquire seemed to be edging it.

Leon hadn't messaged again since last night, and he had at least hoped that he was going about his day as he usually did, up bright and early to start his training regime.. Or whatever.  
He leaned back into the plush cushions on the sofa and sighed in bliss, only just remembering his promise to Nessa before he left.  
"Hey Rotom, mind telling Nessa I got back ok? I'm feeling pretty exhausted so I'm probably gonna nap."  
"Right away, Raihan!" It replied.  
As soon as the headache eased he felt himself drift off to sleep once more.

-

He'd awoken once more to the sound of his Rotom ringing in his ear, and he swatted it away as he tried to blink out sleep, confused as to whether he had accidentally set an alarm until he'd woken up some more and realised that someone had been phoning him.  
He yawned audibly and took Rotom from the air gently to inspect who had been calling him.

_Leon._   
**10 miscalls**

Was it urgent? Or was he desperate to share the good news with Raihan?  
He felt the tension on Leon's behalf and rang him back immediately, only hoping that he'd pick up immediately.  
Thankfully he did.

"Hey you, you rang?" Raihan greeted, unsure how to proceed.  
"Raihan!" His voice was filled with childlike excitement, and Raihan couldn't help but smile wide at that. "I got the job!"  
"Yes! I told you you would do it!" He chuckled, moving Rotom from one hand to the other for the purposes of comfort.  
"When do you start?"  
"They told me in the meeting that I could start whenever I was able to, so I told them next Monday. Gives us time to celebrate as you promised."

_Celebrate_

Suddenly the idea didn't seem so good to him anymore, he swallowed nervously as he recalled telling Leon he wanted to talk about what he'd said, talk about _them._  
The last thing he wanted was to ruin their friendship.  
As if sensing his discomfort through the silence, Leon broke it once more.  
"You have nothing to worry about, you know, with what you told me." He reassured, waiting for a response but to no avail.  
"Alright... Well, is it ok we eat in Wyndon? I don't really fancy the Hammerlocke food. There's also a lot more choice here."  
"Sure." He replied, when did his voice get so hoarse? "I'll meet you there this evening?" He asked.  
"Sounds good, six?" Leon suggested.  
"It's a date." Raihan replied, smiling, only to chastise himself at his dumb choice of words again as Leon hung up on him without word of goodbye.

He'd really done it this time.


	5. Chapter 5

Despite confidence constantly being his forté when dealing with relationships, right now he felt like it'd completely flown out the window.  
As much as he loved Leon, and even though they'd known each other since they were kids, he still found him one of the hardest people to read, he wasn't even sure if they were on the same page about pursuing their relationship further.  
He only hoped that it'd be easier for him to garner how he feels about it when they meet face to face later.

He rolled to one side of the bed and checked his phone once more to remind himself of the time, having lost track of it from his brief shut-eye.  
Thankfully he still had significant time to get himself ready, rising to his feet with a little too much effort that nearly sent him rolling forwards.

He figured he'd have enough time to shower, and given he hadn't since the day before he was desperately in need of one, and he knew for a fact that Leon would call him out on it otherwise.  
The thought amused him a little, and he couldn't help but smile as he padded into the bathroom, shivering as his feet touched the tiles.

He discarded his clothes to the floor and shifted them to one side with his foot before entering the shower, wincing a little as the cold water hit his face upon turning it on, not mindful as always of the fact that he should have let it run a little first.  
He let the water run over his face and body, letting it sooth his muscles, sighing as he felt himself relaxing under the stream.  
It allowed him time to think, because what better time to be spending thinking than when you're under a warm stream of water.  
It didn't take much effort to clean himself up either so he put himself on autopilot as he considered how to progress upon meeting Leon at Wyndon.

He did tell him to meet him there at six, but he was already completely and utterly unconvinced that he'd show up on time, already predicting that he'd get lost in a city as big as Wyndon.  
He couldn't help but smile even more at that, it was definitely one of the traits that endeared Raihan to him, as sharp as Leon could be, it didn't measure to how airheaded he could also be by contrast.

_Oh how he loved him._

He lathered up his hair with shampoo, mindful not to get any suds in his eyes and let it settle for a while before rinsing it out and stepping out of the shower once more, grabbing his towel to dry himself up before heading out and making the more important choice of deciding what to wear.  
There was no doubt in his mind as to what cologne he'd choose, and he promptly put on his favourite, most expensive brand before patting it dry.  
 _Only the best for Leon._ He told himself.

He was too shameless to even be phased by seeing himself naked in the mirror out of the corner of his eye as he sifted through his wardrobe for something suitable for the occasion, he wanted to look fancy but also didn't want to go over the top and become some kind of garish mess.

It was another trait of Leon's that Raihan loved - His awful fashion sense. It was always as if he fell into a wardrobe or dressed himself with clothes he found in the dark.  
At the same time, it was only _him_ that could pull off such a feat, and Raihan was sure he was the type to even be able to carry a bin bag well.

Thoughts of Leon kept invading his mind, and the more he tried to fight it off, the worse it seemed to be getting.  
Maybe it'd have been better if he was hungover, because at least then he could focus on the headache above anything else.

He whittled down his choices to two complete outfits and positioned each against his body while looking in the long mirror in the corner of the room before finally deciding on one.  
He didn't have much chance to wear such clothes often, so he was more than eager to take it out, in fact he was unsure whether he'd even worn it at all.

It had been a gift from one of the fashion labels he endorsed on PokeGram, and even though he was no doubt going to be a walking advertisement for them in this case, he really didn't care.  
Comfort and style mattered to him more than sending their sales through the roof or not.

He glanced at the time once more and was satisfied that it was more than enough time to head out, if he arrived early anyway he could always have a look around Wyndon in the meantime, maybe even bump into Leon trying to look for him as well and save some time in the process.

"Let's go.." He mumbled, feeling the nerves begin to form once more as he considered what could be the moment he landed in Wyndon and met up with Leon.  
He took Snaps' Pokeball from his belt and pocketed it with a little more effort than necessary before leaving his home and locking up.

It wasn't long before speculation bloomed when a stray reporter caught a glimpse of him heading to the centre of Hammerlocke in order to get Snaps a better flight path, he dismissed their questions as they accosted him, waving them off with excuses that he was in a hurry, which wasn't a complete lie anyway.  
As soon as he lost his patience with them following him down the street, he reached for his Pokeball and freed Snaps, practically jumping onto his back with a little too much eagerness and whispering the destination in his ear so the media couldn't get wind of it.

-

He savoured the flight over once more, safe in the knowledge that nobody could bother him up here, and he almost dreaded touching down because he knew that as soon as he did the rumours would already be circulating around the press.  
They'd only get worse as soon as he met Leon, too.  
As soon as he did set foot in Wyndon he made quick work of sending Leon a text to tell him that there was a change of plan.

**_Meet me at the restaurant. And get a table in a private booth, I'll join you about 15 minutes later, press are sniffing around._ **

It wasn't as if he had anything to hide, but he still hated them encroaching on his private life, especially when he had plans to perhaps court Leon, if he found out he felt the same way anyway.  
He inhaled nervously once more as the idea flooded his thoughts, checking on his phone once more as Leon sent back his reply.

**_Sure thing, having a meeting with League Officials atm but shouldn't be long_ **

**_Make sure you don't get lost :P Maybe I'll go to the restaurant first._ **

**_...That's probably for the best..._ **

He smirked almost triumphantly and peered at the time once more before putting Rotom away again, he still had about an hour to kill so he figured it was best used buying some treats for Leon.  
He did deserve a gift or two.. Or three, right?

He passed by one of the many boutiques situated in Wyndon first and decided with a shrug that he may as well check it out on passing, there was nothing wrong with browsing various shops until he settled on something _perfect._

He'd shuffled around several different kinds of shops and surprisingly ended up coming up empty save for a bouquet of flowers that were a mix of purples and yellows, matching Leon's hair and eyes perfectly.  
He was finally on the verge of giving up on finding something else when he passed by the boutique opposite the intended restaurant and spotted a suit and cravat combo displayed on a mannequin in the window.  
It looked utterly ridiculous in his mind but _he could see Leon wearing it._  
And if things were changing, what was wrong with a new outfit he could wear proudly at the Battle Tower?  
He promptly went in to purchase everything displayed on the mannequin, having it carefully wrapped thereafter when asked if he wanted it to be a gift for someone.

He only hoped that Leon liked it.

He thanked the attendants and quickly made his way out of the shop, flowers and gift in hand, only to be confronted by a member of the press wielding a hefty camera in their hand and snapping a photo, the flash almost blinding him.  
He cursed out an expletive and glared at the perpetrator, he wanted to bark at them to delete it but instead decided not to rouse more attention and instead retreated into the restaurant, hoping beyond hope that they wouldn't catch Leon arriving after him and piecing it together.  
This was one way that his lack of directional sense would probably be more useful.

He glanced up as a waiter approached him and he smiled sweetly in greeting.  
"Hey, table for two? In a private booth please."  
The waiter nodded in assent and lead him further into the restaurant until he arrived at a secluded booth in the corner of the building.  
 _Perfect._  
Apart from the media, everything was going well, almost too much so.  
He pushed the doubt aside and carefully laid the flowers on the table before moving to sit down, reaching out for Rotom to message Leon and kill time in the process.

**_I'm at the restaurant, be careful of the media._ **

Usually he'd respond promptly, however when he didn't reply he just distracted himself by doing other things, namely playing that dumb mobile game on his phone again.  
It had him absorbed enough though that he didn't even realise that Leon had arrived, only snapping out of it as he saw him moving to sit down opposite.

"Hey, sorry if I'm late. I actually didn't get lost this time. Must be a miracle." He laughed, leaning over the table a little to allow for some comfort.

"You're actually right on time." Raihan affirmed, glancing once at the time on his phone before closing it down and putting it away.  
"These are for you." He murmured, handing him the bouquet of flowers hesitantly, unable to look him in the eye as he felt his face flush red again, no doubt betraying his emotions.

"Ah- They're _beautiful!_ Thank you!"  
If there was any disdain about receiving such a poor present, it wasn't evident on his face as he looked genuinely happy to receive them.  
"I also got you something else but I'll give it to you later." He added, rubbing the back of his neck as he felt the beads of cold sweat forming.  
"You didn't have to! I feel bad for not getting you anything..."  
"No- No it's fine. I didn't expect you to" He replied, smiling.

The silence enveloped the pair thereafter, and Raihan decided against the smalltalk and instead cleared his throat and took up one of the menus to choose his meal.  
"So, have you been here before?"  
 _He cursed himself internally, he didn't want to give smalltalk at all._  
"Hm? I have actually, though it was actually when I first became Champion, Rose brought me here but then buggered off before I even ordered anything, guess I dodged a bullet though." He laughed some more, and Raihan found himself _staring_ this time.  
 _"Beautiful...."_  
Leon looked at him, puzzled.  
"Hm?"

If his face hadn't been a giveaway before, it definitely was now, even though he knew that Leon was as oblivious as a Slowpoke.  
"D-did I say that out loud? I-I-"  
"Are you alright Rai? I've never seen you so... Nervous before."  
He didn't respond to his question, instead deciding to sidestep it completely as he chewed on his lip in thought, it was a wonder it hadn't been cut to ribbons by the time he'd finished deliberating.  
"When I said I loved you... I... I really meant it, you know." He admitted, glancing up at Leon to get some semblance of what he was thinking, but his expression turned neutral and it made Raihan's stomach do somersaults.  
"I know you did... And I meant it too when I sent it back." He replied, finally, seemingly hesitant about something.

"I... Want this to be a date, like you'd said. Can we... Try and start a relationship?"  
Raihan sighed in relief and almost wanted to punch the air, but restrained himself.  
" _Yes... Yes!_ " He beamed, glancing down at Leon's hand and threading his own fingers through his.  
Raihan's smile was nothing more than infectious, and Leon couldn't help but smile widely too.  
"Can we kiss Rai? Or is it too soon?"  
He barked out a laugh.  
" _On the first date?_ Damn you're eager-" He cut himself off in response to Leon's pout.  
"I'm kidding! But... I also... Don't want anyone to know about us... At least not yet."  
Leon raised an eyebrow in confusion but didn't press him on it until the waiter came over to take their orders and had gone again.

"You don't want anyone to know? I'm not complaining but I thought you liked the attention."  
Raihan drummed his fingers on the table as he considered his response.  
"I'm mostly thinking about you, to be honest, you're more susceptible to negative press than I am."  
Leon shook his head.  
"I guess it can take its toll on you too, huh."  
Raihan opened his mouth to protest, but he could tell Leon saw through his white lie.  
"Alright, I just don't want people prying into my personal life and make comments about it either... It's just.. a different kind of thing somehow."  
"If it makes you happy then that's fine. It'll be fun living so dangerously, kissing in the shadows." He laughed.

Raihan was glad he had taken it well, at least, he wanted nothing to ruin this for them, and he knew the press had the potential to do so, but he kept that idea to himself instead of saying more.

-

They decided to leave the restaurant separately, and then proceed to leave for Hammerlocke at different time so as not to raise too much suspicion with the press, and it seemed to dupe them for the time being as Raihan didn't spot anything out of the ordinary on news apps or social media in the middle of his journey home.  
He let out a sigh of relief, thankful that he could at least breathe easy for one day.

When he had arrived home, however, Leon was nowhere to be seen.

Raihan let out a sigh, amused.  
" _Lost again, huh._ "

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Eyyyyy they're getting togetherrrrrrr
> 
> Damn this ended up being longer than my average word count for chapters.  
> And I did want to write more at the end of this but decided it was probably good to end it there.
> 
> I have so much planned for this but chapters are filling up much more slowly than I expected them to.
> 
> I hope you're still enjoying this and I hope you stick with me for the whole of this ride <3


	6. Chapter 6

It had taken Leon at least an hour to make his way back to Raihan's, and he suddenly burst through the front door unannounced, oblivious to the idea that making so much fuss about it would draw more attention than not.  
"Hey, sorry I'm late, I tried to give the press-"  
Raihan simply waved off his excuses before rubbing the sleep that threatened to pull him into the land of nod out of his eyes.  
"No excuses, I know you just got _lost_ " He smirked, earning a gentle whack against his shoulder.  
"Rude. I may be directionally challenged-"  
"You can say that again." Raihan cut in, laughing at the face Leon made at that comment.  
" _Fine._ I _may_ have gotten lost." He admitted, pouting even more, which only served to endear Raihan to him more if it was even possible.  
"So." Raihan spoke up.  
"So." Leon echoed, his pout displaced by a bright beam as he maneuvered himself around the sofa and into Raihan's lap, nestling against his chest for comfort.

"What have you been up to?" Leon asked, breaking the silence that threatened to hang in the air for far too long.  
Raihan shrugged.  
"Not much, just browsing, taking photos..." He replied, trailing off, in all honesty he didn't really do anything of note because all he did was daydream about everything he would do with Leon by the time he arrived.  
Only now it felt a lot harder to put into practice, even though he'd been in numerous relationships before, it felt like he was starting all over again with Leon.  
He couldn't put his finger on why, though.

_Take it slowly._

"What about you? Other than getting lost." He quipped.  
Leon just stuck his tongue out in response before pulling himself closer and running his fingers through Raihan's hair, smiling.  
"Mind if I take off your headband?"  
"It'll cost you."  
Leon gave him a look before carefully undoing the straps at the back and removing it, stroking his hair some more before pressing a kiss to his cheek.  
"One payment of a kiss made, now can I take your hairband out, too? Your hair looks so much nicer down"  
"Sure, if you give me a better kiss this time."

Leon couldn't help the grin that spread across his face as he slowly leaned in to kiss Raihan's mouth, tenderly at first only to carefully deepen it once Raihan had allowed him to.  
It was clear that Raihan had the upper hand with the experience, on Leon's part it was more messy, hands fisting into Raihan's hair as he couldn't get enough of his taste.

Finally the pair had to part for air yet neither of them were about to relent now, taking eachother again and again until the exhaustion had taken over.  
Leon laughed breathlessly when they were forced to part for around the 5th time, and Raihan knew there and then that he would never get tired of that laugh, never get tired of seeing his eyes shine with happiness.

He still couldn't help but ask, though, even if somewhat out of the blue.  
"Are you happy Lee?"  
He looked up at Raihan once more, slightly puzzled at the sudden question, but still considered his answer before responding.  
"Honestly, yes? I _loved_ being the Champion, of course, but now that it's been a few days... I know how much it stopped me from doing what I wanted. I feel... liberated? Maybe that isn't the right word to use but... Yeah." His gaze averted as he explained himself, only to glance back up at Raihan once more.  
"What about you?"  
"Me?"  
"You." Leon smirked. "It can't have been easy for you either, I'm... Sorry you didn't get to defeat me first."  
Raihan felt sheepish, uncertain of how to respond to that and instead chose to avoid answering it completely in favour of peppering Leon in kisses to deviate from the subject, he hadn't realised how sore it still was on his behalf until he had asked about it.

Thankfully Leon let it drop and Raihan snaked an arm around his shoulders to hug him close and press his face into his hair.  
"Thank you for not pressing it.." He mumbled into his hair, still loud and clear enough for Leon to understand, and he smiled once more, resting a hand on Raihan's leg.  
"I don't want you to be uncomfortable, so talk to me about whatever you like because I'll always be here."  
He nodded slowly against his head before removing his face and rubbing it.

"Are you going to stay the night? It is pretty late now, and you can take the bed if you want I don't mind."  
"Rai?" He replied, perplexed at the suggestion. "We can share right? We _are_ boyfriends now after all."  
"I know but..."  
"Nobody is going to see us if that's what you're worried about."  
"I don't want the press to ove-"  
"I'll be fine, I'm made of tough stuff, I promise, now come on, you look like you could use the rest." Leon suggested as persuasively as he could manage, untangling himself from Raihan's limbs and making his way to the bedroom.  
"Mind if I borrow some of your clothes tomorrow Rai?" He called from the hallway as he ascended the stairs.  
"Of course." Came his reply as he stretched and made the effort of turning off everything before following Leon upstairs to get ready for bed.

He felt his foot knock into something as he turned the corner of the door and glanced down to find the gift he'd bought Leon earlier neatly wrapped inside a gift bag.  
He smirked and picked it up as he made his way up the stairs as quickly as he could, desperate to find out his reaction to it.  
"Hey, I almost forgot about the other gift. I really hope you like this one too. It'll... Suit you." He murmured, tacking on the awful pun at the end before handing it over to an expectant Leon as he sat on the bed.

He carefully took the box from the bag and untied the ribbon in turn, removing the lid and peering inside to see what it was.  
"This is.. a suit?" He queried, clearly puzzled.  
"Yeah.. I thought it would look good on you, especially in the Battle Tower. If you don't like it though-"  
"No-" Leon cut in, already holding up the garments against himself to view in the mirror.  
"I _love_ it, thank you so much."  
"I'm glad you do." Raihan responded, rolling back onto the bed and watching Leon as he fussed over the gift with a smile.  
"You should definitely try it on tomorrow, but let's get some sleep for now? You can be the little spoon."  
"Oh? What makes you think I am a little spoon?" He countered, hanging the suit to one side before joining Raihan on the bed, creeping over him and straddling him, only to send Raihan into a fit of laughter.  
"Wow this... really doesn't work for you" He managed between chortles.  
Leon groaned and rolled to one side, only to suddenly feel arms lock him in place from behind.  
"Tricked you~ My little spoon." He hummed.  
Leon opened his mouth to protest but the resounding snores coming from the taller man told him that he was completely knocked out almost immediately.

He smiled warmly.  
"You really are tired huh."

-

Raihan had woken up late to an empty bed and a multitude of messages on his Rotom phone, he groaned and rolled to one side for comfort and scrolled through them for any hint as to where Leon could have gone, much less how he even broke free from the binds that were Raihan's arms. (Even though he was admittedly weaker than Leon in the first place)  
He stopped at a message Leon had sent him at around 9am and skimmed over it.

**_Leon: Sorry some higher ups from the League called me for a meeting so I had to leave early after all, so much for a weekend together. I promise we'll definitely do something together though, ok? Love you x_ **

He couldn't help but smile, Leon was always so busy.  
 ** _Raihan: That's fine of course, but don't overdo it._**

He skimmed over his own words briefly and pressed send, as much as he wanted to reiterate his affections he didn't want to risk someone reading the messages over Leon's shoulder unaware.

He moved on to his next messages in the order of those he cared about most, settling on the group chat he had with Nessa and Sonia, who had both sent him messages of the same nature, asking how things had gone with Leon and the like.

**_Message sent 11.41am - Nessa: give me deets stat._ **   
**_Message sent 12.02pm - Nessa: raihan_ **   
**_Message sent 12.02pm - Sonia: Raihan_ **   
**_Message sent 12.03pm - Nessa: raihan_ **   
**_Message sent: 12.04pm - Sonia: R A I H A N_ **   
**_Message sent: 12.30pm - Sonia: This better be worth it_ **   
**_Message sent: 1.11pm - Raihan: Hey sorry I overslept._ **

He deliberated over exactly what to tell them and decided to keep it vague.

**_Message sent: 1.16pm - Raihan: Things went well, I think_ **   
**_Message sent: 1.17pm - Nessa: good_ **   
**_Message sent: 1.18pm - Nessa: also piers invited us to a gig and clubbing u better come this time bitch_ **   
**_Message sent: 1.20pm - Raihan: When?_ **   
**_Message sent: 1.20pm - Nessa: ik its short notice but tonight_ **   
**_Message sent: 1.21pm - Raihan: Sure, I'll meet you at Spikemuth at.. 8?_ **   
**_Message sent: 1.21pm - Nessa: sounds good will message u later_ **   
**_Message sent: 1.21pm - Nessa: have fun with leon_ **

_He wished_

He closed his conversation and checked over messages from various sponsors thereafter, who still enjoyed pestering him about new product launches even off season in an attempt to get him to plug them on his PokeGram account.  
If he was in a good mood he'd usually comply, even if the products were usually awful in his opinion, this was one of those times though.  
He picked one of the products at random and screenshotted it before adding it to his PokeGram story with a caption telling them how good it was.  
Part of him felt bad at how easily people were duped into eating it up, though, but he couldn't help everyone.

"Message from Leon!" Rotom trilled, floating almost as if excitedly around Raihan's head.  
 ** _Leon: I won't overdo it, it's only a meeting._**  
 ** _Leon: Don't think I'll be back in Hammerlocke today tho sorry_**  
 ** _Raihan: That's ok. Going to Spikemuth later with Nessa and Sonia anyway_**  
 ** _Leon: Spikemuth?_**  
 ** _Raihan: Yeah, Piers is gigging_**  
 ** _Leon: Ah, be careful love, Spikemuth is dangerous lately_**

His heart fluttered as his eyes scanned the word "love" and he had to compose himself before replying.

**_Raihan: I will be, I promise. I'll visit you in Wyndon tomorrow x_ **

Before seeing what Leon had to say if anything, he closed the message app once more and checked his social media instead.  
Somehow he'd neglected to see all of the notifications of him being tagged in some news article that had been published, and he had to squint to see what the grainy image was of, the news itself meant nothing to him so he assumed it was some other poor edit of his face on someone else's body.  
He sighed, too many people live for scandal.

The headline irked him though.  
 **DRAGON LEADER HAS HIS TREASURE**

What did that even mean?  
He glanced at a higher quality image this time and his blood ran cold the moment he recognised the image.  
It _was_ him

And it was Leon by his side.

He didn’t want it to come out yet.  
He didn’t want it to come out at all.


	7. Chapter 7

He scrutinized the photo of them for admittedly much more time than he had needed to, trying to surmise if there was any small details he missed that was a huge giveaway as to how their relationship had taken a turn recently.  
He turned his head at an angle and squinted, then turned it the other way, moving his Rotom phone closer to his face, then further away.  
"I can't see _anything..._ I don't know what they're on about..."  
He let out a sigh of relief and glanced at the time before setting his phone aside and getting up. It was high time he got himself in the shower anyway, and he knew it would serve as a good distraction.

Instead as soon as he had discarded his clothes and stepped under the hot spray of water, he found himself thinking about the article all over again.  
Maybe if he'd actually _read_ it he'd realise it was all conjecture, the media spewing out make-believe bullshit disguised as exclusive news just to earn the web traffic, as usual.  
He closed his eyes and ran his hair under the water, letting out a blissful sigh as he relaxed under the stream for a while before soaping it up and making an effort to clean himself.

It ended up being a half-hearted attempt, rubbing soap here and there while on autopilot as he continued to think still about the article.  
"There's no way they know..." He reassured himself as he finally shut off the water, satisfied that he was clean enough for the day at least and stepping back into the bedroom and throwing on a clean dressing gown.

He collapsed back onto the bed and picked up his phone again, just about managing to stop himself from clicking on the article once more in favour of taking a photo of himself sprawled on the bed, hair still soaked and strewn everywhere, giving a little peace sign for good measure.  
He chewed his lip nervously and debated on whether to send it to Leon, if anyone got wind of it then it'd just be more fodder for the press, he knew, but he also desperately wanted to get his opinion on it.  
Besides, it would probably also do well to make Leon's day a little brighter, and that was definitely worth the risk.

"Fuck it."

His thumb still hovered in brief hesitance over the send button and he finally relented and bit the bullet, sending it as soon as possible and closing it almost immediately as if in shame.

_He is your boyfriend, remember, it's fine._

But nobody else knew that, and he kept telling himself he wanted to keep it that way.  
He wasn't even sure why he wanted to step so carefully around the issue, even though he knew that everyone seemed to like the idea of them being a couple, there was still that doubt in the back of his mind that someone or something would ruin it for them should they find out.

_"Image is everything."_

Those words burned in his mind once more and he hated the fact that he couldn't let them go, especially knowing who gave him that bull advice in the first place.  
He shut his eyes tight and pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration as if it would help to abolish the phrase from his mind, but it was to no avail as they just seemed to echo in his mind instead, making it worse.

"Rotom... Play some music, please? Some heavy metal."  
His Rotom was silent for a while but eventually he could hear the screams blasting through its speakers, and it did serve well to drown out the noise in his head at least, even if it wasn't his usual choice of music.

He beckoned with his hand for Rotom to draw near and it acquiesced, hovering near his hand before he took it from the air gently once more.  
"Hm. Guess I should get ready for tonight..." He mumbled, knowing his heart wouldn't be in it at all but accepting it'd be good for him at least.

"Can you go charge while I get ready please, Rotom?"  
"Yes!" It trilled, floating towards its charge point and settling down on it.  
He smiled as he watched it settle there, lifting himself up on the bed and heading back to the bathroom quickly to brush his teeth and dry his hair.  
"Guess I should have dried it sooner..." He grumbled, eyeing up the messy strands of hair that stuck up in all directions as he dried the remainder of it as best he could with the towel.  
"Looking good otherwise."

He stared at himself for what felt like an eternity, lips pressed in a thin line in all seriousness as he picked out any flaws he could find in his features, blind to any of the positives.  
"...No, no I'm not..."  
He turned away and retreated from the bathroom as fast as his legs could take him, practically throwing himself into the sofa by the time he reached the living room.

He eyed up the Pokeballs he rested on the stand nearby and decided to let them all out one by one, knowing that there would be no better comfort right now than to be in their presence.  
Snaps was the first to be released, of course, his mood evidently sour the moment he appeared as he practically charged at Raihan and nipped him.  
It still did nothing more than cheer him up, though.  
"Ow! What was that for?" He smirked, releasing the rest of his team there and then and fussing over them individually as soon as they were free.

"I don't know what I'd do without you all." He sighed, giving them all one individual pet before returning to the bathroom to try and get reeady again, the entire team following behind him regardless of not being asked to do so.  
He stared at his reflection once more, this time complete with each of his Pokemon crowded behind him and he couldn't help but smile, but at the same time he could feel the tears.  
"Thank you.."  
Snaps moved closer and made an effort to nuzzle Raihan's face, obviously sensing his mood drop.  
" _Fly..._ "  
"I know... I know I'm being silly, Snaps." He replied as if in understanding, scritching behind his antennae and grinning at the reaction to it.  
"I've got this, right?" He smiled at himself in the mirror and laughed at the chorus of sounds from behind him.  
"I've got this."

As if on cue he heard Rotom sound from the other room and heard its cry from where he had stood.  
"Message from Leon!"  
He glanced up at the doorway and headed back through to the bedroom, deciding to hold off on checking the message right away for fear of looking _too_ needy and instead picking out some clothes with the help of his volunteers.  
He rifled through several different pieces of clothing from his wardrobe and picked out what he considered his best pieces, yet decided on nothing too colourful or expensive since it was just Spikemuth he was going to after all.

_No offence Piers._

"How is this?" He asked his Pokemon, holding over the entire ensemble he picked over himself.  
Even though he didn't really want much colour he had chosen a simple red polo shirt and a black leather jacket with ripped acid-wash jeans.  
He had to look the part at least, he supposed.  
His Pokemon seemed to be approving of his selection too, if their cries were anything to go by as he threw the clothes on and showed them.  
Even though he knew they just seemed to be agreeing to make him feel better no doubt, it still did wonders for him.  
"This outfit it is then." He hummed, feeling a lot better already with their encouragement.

He headed over to pick up his phone once more and stopped himself from unlocking it in favour of reading Leon's message first.  
**_Leon: Damn I have a hot boyfriend. <3_**  
He could feel his confidence boosting in spades, and despite the risk of running with it resulting in people finding out, he decided to just throw caution to the wind.  
**_Raihan: Damn straight you do._**

\- 

He could feel the eyes on him as he loitered around the PokeCenter in Spikemuth, waiting for at least one of his friends to show up, and he almost felt like it was some kind of prank in the end or something until Nessa and Sonia turned up arm in arm.  
"Hey, sorry we're late." Nessa spoke up as they reached him.  
"'s ok, Piers is still nowhere to be seen." Raihan shrugged.  
"Oh he's probably sound checking... Can you not hear that?" Sonia questioned, pointing in the direction of the stadium.  
"Oh. I have a lot on my mind..." He admitted, deflecting from the embarassment of not realising as they made their way toward the stadium. 

Nessa watched him in curiosity as they walked, and feeling her eyes trained on him in silence just made him all the more uneasy until she finally broke that silence.  
"Is there something you want to talk about?" She asked, no hint of malice in her tone.  
He considered his words before saying anything and finally nodded.  
"Yeah I guess I am still just... Worried about... Things."  
She didn't blink.  
"Very insightful." She retorted sarcastically.  
"If you don't want to help-" He snapped back, quieting down as soon as Sonia rested a hand on his arm.  
"You know we're on your side Rai, calm down. How about we talk it over tomorrow?" She suggested.  
"What, when we're hungover?" He replied, it was _his_ turn to be sarcastic, yet it didn't earn praise from any of the women beside him.  
"No... Obviously later on." She explained, slowing up her pace as they neared the stadium and the sound check started up again.  
"LET'S JUST TALK ABOUT THIS LATER" She shouted over the sound, and he just nodded in agreement, wincing at the music.  
He wasn't sure if he could take an entire night of this, not to mention moshing was definitely not his thing, he was glad he could at least drink to loosen himself up and wash away any feeling of regret he might have for agreeing to come along. 

\- 

" _You're such an old man_ " Sonia giggled, nudging into Raihan's arm as she sipped on yet another drink.  
" _'m not"_ He slurred. " _I just... can't... just can't... with that music you know?_ " He burst out laughing upon seeing Piers make a face at that comment, slamming the table in turn to emphasise his amusement.  
"I think you've both had enough to drink... Those drinking games were a bad idea." Piers drawled, folding his arms over the table and leaning back in his chair.  
"Aw come on Piersyyyyyy, you know you love me~" Raihan whined, leaning across the table to reach for him.  
Piers simply quirked a brow, his expression blank otherwise.  
"I don't know what you're talking about. Lee-"  
Nessa promptly held a hand over Piers' mouth and shook her head.  
"...That's top... sssecret." She murmured before bursting out laughing too and letting him go. 

He tutted and got to his feet.  
"Fine, but don't blame me if you all feel like shite in the morning." He grumbled, excusing himself from the table and snatching himself away from Raihan's reach in passing.  
"Piersyyyyyyyyyyyy~" They sang in unison, watching sadly as he left to turn in for the evening.  
"Hey... HEY! Let'zz take.. take a selfie.. even though I look like SHIT" Raihan laughed fumbling for his phone.  
"Noooooo Rai you look... so good.. soo good.... if i was into men.. hic.. if.. i was into men I'd bang you" Sonia hummed, now struggling to keep her eyes open.  
"'Niaa. You're... such a wonderful friend." He choked, drying away tears from his eyes as he finally got a hold of his phone.  
"Rotom take a photo pleaseeeeeeee." 

As soon as the Rotom had snapped enough photos to satisfy the trio, Sonia rose to her feet and struggled to maintain her balance, chuckling as she nearly fell over.  
"More drinks anyone??" She asked.  
"Mmmmm... 've had enough."  
Raihan simply put his hand in the air and waved it.  
"Me!" 

Raihan watched in amusement as Sonia struggled to make her way to the bar, only to watch with concern as a man he'd never seen before accosted her at the bar.  
He got to his feet a little too quickly and nearly repeated Sonia's loss of balance, though as soon as he'd recovered he made haste to reach her just as the stranger did. 

"Hey there babe how about I get you a drink?" He smirked, eyeing her up as if he intended to do more with her.  
"mmm can buy m' own." She retorted, throwing her attention back to the bartender before Raihan reached her and held her shoulder. 

"Get lost you prick. She's not interested." He growled, eyes emanating his menacing vibe.  
Even though he towered over the stranger, he still didn't seem perturbed, he just _laughed._  
"Oh I'm so scared of the _big bad_ gym leader Raihan. I thought you weren't _interested_ in women?  
Though I guess that Ex-Champion _does_ look like one." He mocked.  
" _What did you say?!_ " He snarled, dangerously close to completely snapping.  
"Rai leave it. He's not worth it-" Sonia tried, but Raihan had already squared up to the man. 

" _Say that again._ " 

The man started laughing for as long as possible before Raihan completely snapped, lunging at him in a fit of rage and throwing as much damage to the man as he could.  
"Raihan! Stop it!" Sonia pleaded, keeping her distance for her own safety as the rest of the witnesses just watched on and even encouraged the fight to progress, satisfied with the free entertainment. 

Time seemed to progress slowly for her as she watched with horror as the fight continued, calling out for someone to end it but it only seemed to ring on deaf ears, either that or nobody seemed to care about the outcome. 

She felt herself exhale with relief as it came to a stop finally and she moved immediately to Raihan's side, checking him over to make sure he was as unscathed as he could be.  
She took his face in her hands as he seemed to move in and out of consciousness.  
"Raihan? Raihan! Look at me! _Please_ don't pass out."  
She cursed and tried to filter through her brain for her first aid training, but it was an utter struggle with copious amounts of alcohol in her system.  
By the time she managed to pull something from the recesses of her mind, Raihan had passed out after all. 

" _RAIHAN!_ " 


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yooooo sorry for the delay in getting this chapter up! I was away this weekend for my birthday <3  
> (I'll be away the next couple weekends too so there'll be no weekend updates then either)  
> I hope you all had a good one, and I hope you enjoy this chapter :')

The first thing that had hit Raihan the moment he had awoken was the bright lights and white walls enclosing him, the brightness itself causing him to wince and shut his eyes as tightly as possible once again, a feat that ended up doing him more harm than good the moment he was aware of the throbbing pain all over his face.

The second thing he had noticed was the quiet humming of machines surrounding him, coupled with rhythmic beeps on another machine nearby, though he couldn't tell if it was a machine that was working to keep him alive or one situated at another bed.

The third thing, the third thing he noticed was no doubt the best thing, yet he'd been to preoccupied working out where he was to even notice it at first.  
He could feel the warmth of someone's fingers linked through his, slightly calloused from graft, and even before looking he could just tell whose they were.

Before he made any motion, he carefully opened one eye to peer up at the visitor, squeezing his hand in turn to signal that he was awake, only to realise that they were in fact, not, and if he was honest he was glad of it.  
As his eye adjusted to the lights, he carefully opened the other and watched Leon sleeping, even though he was slumped awkwardly in the chair beside him, he figured it was still best to let him catch up on rest.  
He carefully unwound his fingers from his own, taking utmost care not to wake him in the process and drew his hand back under the covers, unable to stop the grin break out as he watched his boyfriend's chest rise and fall in a steady rhythm.

" _I'm sorry for worrying you, I'm glad you're getting rest though._ " He whispered, mostly to himself, but the sentiment was still there.  
He scanned the outside of the room for any signs of life before carefully sliding out of the bed momentarily, pressing a chaste kiss to his cheek and tucking his hair behind his shoulders before carefully returning to his bed.

The light snores emanating from the man stopped suddenly the moment Raihan rolled back under the covers, and he watched with slight annoyance in himself as Leon started to wake up, he couldn't help but be endeared watching his eyes flutter groggily as he woke up, though.

"Hey _Sleeping Beauty_ " Raihan hummed, smirking up at Leon as he came to the realisation that he was awake, only to watch in horror as his boyfriend broke into floods of tears before practically swamping him in a bear hug.  
"R-raihannn!"  
"L-Lee, you're hurting me!" He choked out, which worked well enough to have Leon loosen his grip on him, and his expression did a complete 180 and turned to that of rage.  
"What were you thinking?! You could have been _killed!_ " He growled.  
Raihan rolled his eyes.  
"Don't be silly- it was just-"  
"You've been out for _three days_ , Raihan.. I was so worried..."  
"Hey. I'm fine, and I'm sorry. Come here?" He murmured sheepishly, scooting up a little and patting the bed beside him.

Leon reluctantly took up the space beside him, fighting off the temptation to just lie down next to him and bury kisses in his neck.  
They remained in silence for a while, neither of them knowing what to say until Leon finally broke what awkward silence lingered between them.  
"How are you feeling, anyway?" He asked, drumming his fingers on the bed and still not turning to face him.  
"Honestly... _Rough._ But I'll be fine." He replied, reaching for Leon's hand once more and taking it in his own.  
"The bastard insulted you, you know.. And I just couldn't let it slide. So really I don't mind being here. Guess I can't win anything though huh?" He humoured, squeezing Leon's hand once more in an attempt to get a reaction out of him.  
"It's not funny.. Rai..." He replied, tone laced with sadness.  
"I'm not going anywhere Lee." He squeezed his hand for good measure and sat up in the bed to align his height with Leon's.  
"I love you too much to leave you, whatever the circumstance."  
Leon finally relented and faced him, pouting all the while before collapsing forwards and faceplanting his chest.  
"You'd better not." He huffed, and Raihan couldn't help but let out a chuckle as he could sense his pout, pressing a kiss to his hair and running his fingers through it, only to abruptly stop as a Nurse entered the room, thankfully distracted by the clipboard in hand as Leon moved away from him.

"It's nice to see that you're awake at last Mr Raihan!" She hummed, flipping through her notes before putting the clipboard aside and examining him.  
"How are you feeling? Tell me if anything hurts." She queried, pressing on different parts of his arm at first before examining his face and temples.  
"It does seem like you're back on the mend." She reassured, picking up her clipboard and scribbling some notes as she finished up her examination.  
"Luckily for you, the doctor suggested you can be discharged today, but you'll also have to take complete bed rest and have someone monitor you, just to be on the safe side."

He scrutinised her at the mere mention of bed rest and monitoring, neither of them sounding particularly appealing, especially for someone who loved being outdoors.  
"Yeah, yeah" He replied, unconvincingly.  
"I'll do whatever you say. As long as I can get out of here."  
There was no way he'd be listening to what they say, and there was nobody who had the time to monitor him anyway.  
The Nurse glanced in Leon's direction and smiled as if knowingly.  
"I'm sure you'll be in great hands as you heal up!" She giggled, signing the bottom of the board and flipping over the page once more.  
"If there are any problems please inform your doctor right away." She added, voice a little sterner.  
"Don't worry, I'll look after him." Leon smiled sweetly at the nurse as she practically danced out of the door, she definitely enjoyed her job too much.

"Urgh thanks for covering for me." Raihan sighed as he swung his legs out of the bed, steadying himself as he almost stumbled forward.  
Leon tilted his head in confusion.  
"Covering for you?" He questioned.  
Raihan blinked, sharing the same confusion.  
"Yeah? You told her you'd look after me." He murmured.  
"And I will..." He continued, still confused.  
"What?"  
"What?"  
"You're busy being Chairman, aren't you?"  
"I can do work from home while looking after you-"  
"Leon." Raihan argued.  
"Raihan." Leon countered, smirking up at him as if he knew he'd win the argument.  
And he did, because Raihan really had no words left, Leon always backed him into a corner no matter what the argument was.  
"Fine. But you'd better get plenty of rest too." He huffed, folding his arms and pouting petulantly, turning his face away before Leon cupped his chin and turned it back towards him, leaning down and pressing a kiss to his lips.

"So, your place or mine, Panda?" He smiled playfully, licking his lips.  
Raihan narrowed his eyes.  
"Panda?"  
"Yeah, you look more like a panda than a dragon right now, it's kinda cute."  
"Cute..." He huffed, trailing off as he finally rose to his feet, leaning against Leon for purchase as he felt the ground wobble underneath him.  
Leon's expression contorted in concern.  
"Wyndon is closer, I'll have Dracule take us there." He said, slipped and arm around Raihan's waist to support him as they made their way through the wards, ignoring the glances and stares from passers-by as they manoeuvred their way out of the labyrinth that was the hospital.  
Raihan felt utter bliss the moment he felt the cool air against his face the moment they had stepped outside, and he held his own as Leon carefully let go of him to root around for his Charizard ball.

"Aha!" He cheered upon finding it, tossing it into the air with a flourish and freeing his Charizard, who promptly did its signature pose the moment it flew from the ball.  
" _Does he always do that when you free him? I never noticed...._ "  
Leon laughed.  
"Yeah...." He replied sheepishly, beckoning Dracule to him the moment he'd finished posing mid-air.  
"Hey Dracule" He began, scratching at his favourite spot on the neck before reaching for a poffin in his bag to feed him as a treat.  
"Mind taking us to Wyndon?" He requested, watching his Charizard's expression for a while before he relented and crouched down enough for them to climb on.

"There they are!" Leon heard a call from nearby and turned with horror to see a crowd of media stampeding toward them.  
"Shit." He cursed, hastily helping Raihan onto Dracule before hopping on himself, ignoring the clicks of cameras he heard the moment they took to the air.

"...That was subtle." Raihan sighed, holding on tightly to Dracule's neck as he glanced down at the media as they disappeared in the distance.  
He was at least thankful that Leon's Charizard was a quick flyer, but he was still worried that there'd be another mob waiting for them the moment they touched down in Wyndon.  
"Hey Lee, any chance of landing directly at your house? I have a bad feeling..."  
"..Maybe they'll assume we're going to Hammerlocke.." He suggested, glancing back at Raihan worriedly.  
"It'll be fine, I'll deal with it." He reassured, although he himself didn't sound too convinced.

Before long Wyndon was in sight ahead of them, and somehow Leon's uncertain prediction had been right, as soon as they had landed directly outside his home, there wasn't any media in sight, somehow.  
It did still made Raihan feel uneasy though, as he bundled his way through Leon's door with as much haste as a recovering man could procure.

He collapsed onto his sofa and watched as Leon locked the door behind him, raising an eyebrow in confusion, continuing to watch as he proceeded to shut the curtains before dropping onto the sofa next to him, exhaustion taking over.  
"Are you ok?" Raihan asked, concerned as he curled up beside him. "I'm not sure this is going to be giving any good signals if it looks like we're hiding something..."

"Raihan... I don't really care what they say... I just want some time alone with you in peace.." He replied, pulling his legs up to his chest and resting his head against Raihan's shoulder.  
"I.. Just want to announce it already so we can be more open about it... We can do what we want then, without hiding..."  
"I'm fairly sure everyone already knows, anyway." He added, pressing a kiss to Raihan's temple before meeting his gaze, hopeful that he'd agree with his suggestion.  
Raihan swallowed nervously and chewed at his lip in thought.  
"I don't know if I can... What if people end up hating us?"  
" _Then let them."_  
Raihan dropped his gaze to the floor and shook his head.  
"I... Can't do it, I'm sorry. Let's just... Not do this."  
"Rai... It really doesn't matter what others-"

" _ **I don't want to be with you!**_ "


End file.
